Dead Zone
by BansheeFromHell
Summary: Axel and the gang search for Nikki after she leaves the castle to find her family and friends and save them from a nasty fate. But when the zombies come, who's going to save THEM?
1. Prologue

**Banshee: Hi everybody. Halloween is coming up, so I thought I'd write a short story for it. I also put up a Halloween oneshot, so be sure to check that out too. Ja ne~!**

**Disclaimer: I only own my OCs and the plot.**

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><p>Prologue<p>

* * *

><p>They said it could never happen.<p>

They said the dead could never come back to life.

Well they were dead wrong; emphasis on 'dead.' Dead with a capital 'D.' You get the picture.

It came out of nowhere. It was the biggest epidemic in human history. As usual, it started with one, and one was all it took. Soon it overtook the entire world. Seventy percent of the human race was turned into flesh-eating monsters while the other thirty percent either fought, ran, died, or were turned themselves. She hoped her family was part of the thirty percent.

She found it difficult to watch the news lately. Every time she turned the channel, she was afraid she'd see one of her family members being attacked or a friend stumbling through the streets all glassy-eyed and craving flesh. Sometimes the news crew was attacked and overwhelmed by zombies during the live broadcast. Even the police force and military would get overrun. The good quality microphones they used made it possible to hear every single crunching and chomping noise and every gut-wrenching scream. Some news networks had been disconnected, and some radio stations have gone out too. There wasn't even any cell phone service. How the hell was she supposed to call her family and friends and make sure they were okay?

Her fellow Organization members weren't concerned. Not one bit. No zombie could ever reach the World That Never Was. Even if they did, they would never be able to get into the castle. Why? Because the castle floats above the fucking ground. That's why.

It was killing her. Was she going to sit here, in the safest place in the universe, while her family and friends were running for their lives through some God-forsaken zombie-infested town or city?

The answer is: Hell. No.

She was going to find them and bring them back to the castle; and kill some zombies while she was at it.

She wrote a message on a sticky note and stuck it to the TV (the one place where she knew everyone could see it). She took her backpack and armed herself with her hidden weapons. Then she called her faithful portal-making pet to her side, and it created a portal. Her resolve hardened, she stepped through the portal, ready to face whatever was on the other side.

"_Going to save family and friends. Don't know when I'll be back. Unless you're going to help me, STAY THE FUCK OUT OF MY WAY!"_

_- Sincerely, Nikki (a.k.a. Number XIV)_

…

…


	2. Chapter 1

**Banshee: Hi everybody. Here's chapter 2 of 'Dead Zone.'**

**Disclaimer: I only own my OC and the plot.**

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><p>Chapter One<p>

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><p>…<p>

- Roxas' POV -

…

Nikki's been gone for almost a week. She took Momo with her, and without him there was no way to track her down… well… there were the Dusks, but we weren't sure how the virus would affect them. Besides, they're dumb as posts and probably couldn't even tell the difference between a zombie and an actual living human; hell, they can't even tell the difference between a photo and the real thing.

Ever since Nikki left, Axel's been a nervous wreck. You would be too if your girlfriend decided to throw herself into a zombie-infested area and there was no way to contact her; the phones were down anyway, but it would have been okay if she relayed her messages through Momo… which she hasn't.

We were all sitting around the table wondering what had happened to her.

"It's been six days and we still haven't heard from Nikki…"Axel mumbled to himself.

"You don't think she… you know…" Demyx hesitated to say the next word, "_died_, do you?"

"She wouldn't put herself in the middle of a zombie infestation without knowing how to handle herself." Zexion reasoned. "If anything, _she's_ the one killing _them_."

"Zexion's got a point." I agreed.

"I wonder if killing zombies is as fun as they make it look in _Dead Rising_.." Demyx mumbled.

Axel growled in frustration and stood up.

"I can't sit here anymore!" He exclaimed.

"A-Axel! Where are you going?" I asked.

"Where do you think I'm going? I'm going to find my girlfriend!"

"She's not going to come back without her family, Axel." Said Zexion. "She's made it crystal clear that she's not coming back until she finds them and makes sure they're safe, and she'll strike down anyone that tries to stop her."

"Who said I was going to stop her? I just want to find her and make sure she's okay."

"You're not going out there alone. I'll go with you." I proclaimed.

"I'll go too." Zexion said.

"Me too." Said Demyx.

"I thought you were afraid of zombies, Demyx." I said.

"I am, but… I'm more scared of Nikki, and I don't want her to come back and haunt me if anything happens to her.."

"Fair enough."

"Enough chatter. Let's get moving." Axel ordered.

…

- Later, at the Main Island -

- Axel's POV -

…

At first we didn't know where to go. Nikki has a lot of friends in the area, and she could be looking for any one of them. From what I knew, her father keeps a few guns in his house, so at least we could rule out her parents for the time being.

Separating was definitely not a good idea, so we stuck together.

"Jeez.. Looks like a bomb went off here.." I muttered after observing our surroundings; which literally looked like somebody dropped a bomb here.

"A zombie apocalypse will do that." Roxas deadpanned.

"Hey, there's somebody over there." Demyx said, pointing to a man standing in the street. "Maybe he's seen Nikki."

"Demyx, I don't think you should-" Zexion warned.

But it was too late. Before he could even finish his sentence, Demyx went over to the man.

"Hey, mister!" He called out.

We followed him as he approached the man. At first glance, he looked like some drunk homeless guy. His clothes were tattered and dirty, his skin was pale, and he stood there with a blank expression as his mouth hung open. There was blood on his clothes, but we didn't think anything of it at the moment. I noticed that his eyes were glassy.

"Does this guy smoke pot?" I asked, after giving him a look over. "His eyes are glassy as fuck.."

"Are you sure he's not a zombie? They have glassy eyes." Said Roxas.

"So do potheads."

Roxas gave me a look. "I doubt this guy's on pot.."

"Yeah he is."

"No he's not."

"Are we really doing this? _Really_?" Zexion said, sighing exasperatedly at our argument.

"Prove he's not a pothead, then." I dared him.

"Guys, come on…"

"Okay. Do potheads have black gums?" He asked.

I looked at the man, and noticed his gums were black.

"Well.. No…"

"Do potheads walk around making a groaning noise?"

The man was groaning.

"No…" I shook my head. "That still doesn't prove anything!"

He gave me a look, shook his head, and sighed, "Okay.."

Roxas picked up a sharp steel rod and jammed it into the man's chest. Then he took the rod out and stabbed him in the stomach and leg (both times hitting him in a major artery), and used his foot to kick the man to the ground. He landed on the ground, and wasn't moving. I figured he was dead; who could survive those kinds of injuries, anyway? The blood that oozed out of the wounds wasn't normal. It looked almost like jelly.

"How about now?" He asked in a matter-of-factly tone as he flicked the blood off his weapon.

"You hit him in the vitals. There's no way that guy's still alive."

I was proven wrong when the man stumbled to his feet. It was as if those hits didn't affect him at all.

"… Oh shit, he's a-"

"Whoa, dude!" Demyx exclaimed as the man lunged towards him.

"Zombie!"

The nocturne was on the ground with the zombie on top of him, using both hands to hold it back as it clawed at him and tried to bite him.

"Get this psycho off me, man!" He yelled.

"Don't let him bite you, Demyx! Hold him back!"

"I'm trying!"

Roxas took the rod and slammed it into the side of the zombies head, knocking it off of Demyx.

".. Is he dead - you know, for real this time?" He asked as he hurried to his feet, dusting the dirt off his pants.

"He's not getting back up, so I'm guessing he's dead." I said.

The zombie wasn't moving, but that wasn't enough for Roxas. He walked up and delivered a kick hard enough to knock its head off. There was a sickening 'snap' as the head detached from the body. The head was sent flying a few feet before it hit the ground, bouncing off the pavement three times before stopping.

"Roxas!" I exclaimed. "What'd you do that for? The guy's dead!"

"Doubletap." He said.

I raised an eyebrow. "What the fuck does 'doubletap' mean?"

"Haven't you guys ever heard of the 'Rules of Survival?'"

"Nope." I said.

Demyx shook his head. "No clue."

"If you guys were left alone, you'd be dead in five minutes…" Roxas deadpanned.

"I'd hate to be the bearer of bad news, but I think your little 'performance' has caught the attention of every zombie within a two block radius.." Zexion pointed out as he gestured to the dozen other zombies that were approaching.

They were stumbling out of alleyways and buildings and into the streets, their arms outstretched towards us as they groaned.

"What do we do now?" Demyx asked.

"I got an idea…" I said. Then I yelled, "_**RUN**_!"

So we ran. Once we ditched one group, we'd bump right into another one. Before we knew it, he had an entire horde of zombies chasing after us. We were thankful that they were the slow kind, and not the kind from the remake of _Dawn of the Dead_ because if they were we'd be fucked with a capital 'F.'

Eventually, we ran out of places to run. We had an army of zombies in front of us, and the ocean at our backs.

"Oh great!" Roxas yelled. "There's no way out!"

"Can't we just use a portal?" Demyx asked.

"I'm not leaving without my girlfriend!" I shouted. "Out of the way! I'll burn a path through these fuckers!"

I snapped my fingers, and the horde was suddenly engulfed in flames. It wasn't affecting them that much because they were still reaching for us even as they were being burned. Wanting to finish them off quickly, I upped the temperature. The flames grew more intense, and the zombies were burnt to the point where their bodies crumbled. In seconds, they were reduced to dust, ash, and bones. There were some stragglers remaining, but they were crippled and not much of a threat anymore.

"That takes care of them." I proclaimed.

"But there's still more coming." Roxas said, pointing to another group.

"Then I'll torch them too. I'm gonna find my girlfriend, and I'll cut down every single one of these fuckers until I do!"

…

…


	3. Chapter 2

**Banshee: Alright, chapter three! Eleven days to Halloween, whoo~!**

**Disclaimer: I only own my OCs and the plot.**

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><p>Chapter Two<p>

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><p>…<p>

- Still Axel's POV -

…

I hate zombies.

I really do.

For every one that I burn to a crisp, ten more take its place. It's getting really fucking irritating.

It's been over two days, and we still haven't found Nikki. We haven't found her body yet, and we haven't seen her stumbling around all glassy-eyed, so we assumed she was still alive.

Everywhere we went, there was a zombie waiting to take a bite out of us; literally. If there were too many, we made a run for it. We didn't want to teleport due to the risk of taking some of them with us. If we had a working car, getting away from them would be a lot easier. Unfortunately, we weren't able to find one that worked. Nearly every car there had crashed, or just plain didn't work, so we were stuck running. We were - extremely - thankful that they couldn't run.

We were finally able to get away from them by going to the high school and hiding on the roof. It was a close call, though. Climbing up the stairs slowed us down and they were - literally - nipping at our heels. When we all reached the roof, I moved to shut the door and was nearly knocked back when the zombies tried to throw themselves through the doorway. The others came to help me, and we used everything we had to push them back to the point where there was only enough room for their arms to reach out from the other side and claw at us. Their arms were the only thing keeping us from closing the door, so I burned the offending limbs off. As soon as the arms were gone, the weight of all our bodies pushed against the door caused it to slam shut. We let go after we heard a 'click,' which meant that the door was closed. To be safe, I melted the door to the frame, making it impossible to open without the use of dynamite. For the first time since we got here, we were finally able to rest.

As we sat there, we thought about where Nikki might have gone. We doubted that she would have everyone with her because of the risk of any of them being infected, so she had to keep them somewhere. It had to be somewhere free of zombies, and, from what we knew, the only place was Destiny Island. The island was accessible by boat, and people only went there to hang out; nobody actually lived there. It was a perfect place for Nikki to hide her friends while she looked for more people to bring back with her.

…

- Destiny Island -

…

The island was quiet when we got there. There were no zombies, thank Kingdom Hearts, but it didn't seem like there were any normal people either. We figured that they were all hiding. So we went to look through all the possible hiding places; the tree houses, that big wooden boat at the dock, the shacks, and even Sora and Kairi's 'Secret Place.'

After an hour of searching, we narrowed it down to one tree house.

"I'll go check it out." I said. "You guys wait out here."

I barely had one foot in the door before I heard a "DIE ZOMBIE!" and was cracked in the side of the head. The hit was strong enough to knock me to the floor. My vision was blurry, my ears were ringing, I saw stars, and I could have sworn I heard birds tweeting as they flew in a circle around my head.

"Is he dead?" I heard a familiar voice ask.

"I don't know." Another voice replied.

"Hit him again just to make sure." A third voice chimed in.

"I'm not a zombie, you _dumbass_!" I yelled.

I looked up and could make out the shiny edge of a Keyblade. The owner was, none other than, the Keybearer, Sora. Beside him were Riku and Kairi.

"A-_Axel_?" Sora exclaimed. "Is that you?"

"Dude, what the _fuck_?" I shouted. "You could have killed me!"

"Sorry." The brunette apologized. "We thought you were a zombie.."

"You don't just scream 'DIE ZOMBIE!' and crack somebody over the head the second they walk in the door! A good blow to the head can kill _anybody_, not just zombies!"

"Alright then. Next time a zombie comes around, we'll ask them politely if they're a zombie and _then _we'll crack their skull open.." Riku muttered sarcastically.

Kairi gave him a look, and he turned away with a huff.

"What are you doing here?" She asked.

"Nikki left the castle little over a week ago, and we haven't heard from her since. We came out here to look for her." I explained.

"'We?'"

"Yeah. Roxas, Demyx, and Zexion came with me."

"Is everything okay in here?" Roxas asked as he walked in.

"We heard shouting." Said Demyx.

"Oh, nothing. I just got a Keyblade jammed into the side of my head, that's all." I drawled sarcastically. "No need to check on me, I'm fine."

"None of you have been bitten, right?" Sora asked.

"We've been running around so much, those fuckers haven't gotten a chance to bite us." I said.

"Why are you running? Can't you just teleport from place to place?"

"We would, but we don't want to run the risk of them following us through the portals."

"That makes sense."

"How did you guys get here?" Roxas asked.

"We got here on our own. When the zombies first showed up, we took everything we could carry and headed right for the island. That was a week and a half ago." Said Riku.

Roxas then asked, "Has Nikki been here at all?"

"I'm not exactly sure, but I think she showed up at least a week ago." Riku replied. "She talked to us for a little while, then she said something about finding her friend Sandy and left."

"She's looking for Sandy?" I asked.

"Yeah. But that was a week ago." Sora said. "She might have found her already."

"Thanks." I said, and walked towards the door. "Come on guys, let's go."

"You're not going back there, are you? That place is _crawling_ with zombies!" Sora warned.

"What did Nikki say when you told her that?" I asked.

Sora repeated what Nikki apparently told him. "She said 'Fuck the zombies! I'm gonna save my family and friends, and I'll blow the head off any undead fucker that gets in my way!'"

"Our response is pretty much the same as hers." Zexion said.

"Don't worry about us. We'll be fine." Said Roxas. "You just stay here. I'm sure Nikki will come back for you."

"She'd better come back. She promised."

…

- Back on the Main Island -

…

As soon as we returned to the main island, we made a beeline for Sandy's house. It looked like any other house on that block; dirty, run-down, and blood smeared all over the front - or what was left of it. There was a gaping hole in the front of the house, almost as if somebody drove right through it. At first we figured somebody either died, turned, or was attacked behind the wheel and drove into the house, but there was no sign of the vehicle when we walked in. The tire tracks stopped in the living room, and it even looked like the vehicle turned around and drove away.

We checked the house, but there was nobody there. There were some dead bodies on the floor, but the stage of decay hinted that they were there for days.

"It's no good." I said after we checked the entire house from top to bottom. "The whole place is deserted."

"Any bodies?" Zexion asked.

"A few. But none of them belong to Sandy's family. Nikki must have taken the whole lot when she got here."

We checked Maggie's house next. It was the same there, and it was the same at Harriet and Cassandra's houses too; deserted, nothing but dead bodies, and a gaping hole in the front of their houses with tire tracks leading in and out.

"She came in, got her friends, and killed all the zombies all in one go. Talk about a clean sweep." I remarked as we left the last house. Then I muttered under my breath, "If only she was that efficient on her regular missions…"

"That's not all. There's one thing that all these places have in common." Zexion said.

"What's that?" Roxas asked.

"A vehicle was used to crash through the wall at each house, and the tire tracks are proof of it. There are some here too." He said, pointing to the tracks leading into Cassandra's house.

"You're saying she used a vehicle? Couldn't she just have Momo teleport them out?" I asked. Demyx was pulling on my sleeve frantically, but I shrugged him off.

"She probably did. She must get around using a vehicle, and when she finds someone she has Momo teleport them to a safe place."

"If she's using a vehicle, what kind should we look for?"

"If I were her, I'd go for something big and powerful. Judging by the tire tracks, I'd say either a hummer or a large pickup truck."

"Uh… Guys…" Demyx interjected.

"_What_?" I growled.

He pointed behind us, and all the color drained from our faces when we saw what he was pointing at.

Yup.

You guessed it.

More zombies.

It was a particularly large group this time. They hissed and growled as they lumbered towards us, their arms outstretched and reaching for us. Some of them looked like they were partially eaten before they died, and some had lost so much flesh that they had exposed bones in some places; particularly the legs, torso, arms and face. There were others that had maggots of all stages crawling around in their open wounds. We figured some of them came from the local cemetery because they looked like they had been dead for a while; anywhere from a few days to a few months.

"_Shit_.."

"Let's get out of here!" Demyx shrieked.

We ran, trying to shake off our undead pursuers by running down different streets. However, that strategy only managed to attract more zombies, and the group kept getting bigger. There were at least thirty of them following us when we went down the wrong street and found a dead end. At least with the ocean we could swim away. Now, we were dead meat. I could burn them, but there were way too many.

"Oh great! A dead end!" I exclaimed.

"And if we don't find a way out of this, _we'll_ be dead!" Roxas shouted.

"If only we had a miracle…"

Two seconds after Demyx said that, the sound of an engine caught our attention. Out of nowhere, a bright yellow hummer blindsided the group of zombies, knocking them to the ground and crushing them under its wheels. It skidded to a stop and started again, running over some more. Some zombies tumbled over the front of the vehicle as it plowed into them.

"Whoa! Who's that guy?" Roxas exclaimed.

"I don't know." I said. "But whoever he is, he's kicking ass!"

The hummer's window suddenly rolled down, and the driver, who was wearing a racer's helmet with the visor down, used one hand to point a machine gun out the window. Another window rolled down and the passenger, who was also wearing a racer's helmet, pulled out two machine guns, but they were smaller than the one the driver was holding. While using one hand to drive, the driver and their passenger fired their machine guns, filling the undead horde with bullets. Their heads were blown apart from the amount of shots they fired into them all at once. In less than a minute, they had taken out the entire group. The hummer screeched to a stop, the driver's side facing us as the driver glanced at us.

"Hey, thanks for the save, dude!" Demyx said gratefully.

"Yeah, we owe you one!" I agreed.

The driver glanced briefly at their passenger before opening the door and stepping out of the vehicle, the machine gun still clenched tightly in their hand. They took off their helmet, and our eyes widened in shock.

"No way…"

…

…


	4. Chapter 3

**Banshee: Hi everybody. If this chapter seems short, I'm sorry. I wanted more time to work on the final chapter because it's going to be pretty long. I want to get it all done before Halloween. Hope you like it.**

**Disclaimer: I only own my OCs and the plot.**

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><p>Chapter Three<p>

* * *

><p>…<p>

- STILL Axel's POV -

…

Turns out, the person that saved us wasn't a dude… it was a chick. I figured that out when she stepped out of the hummer and revealed her feminine figure.

And what a lovely figure it was. Her steel-toed boots were caked in blood, and the pads on her knees were dirty and scratched. Knives were strapped to the boots. Skin-tight jeans showed off her nice legs, said jeans torn from the mid-thigh down. Three kinds of guns were strapped to a belt tied around her sexy hips. She wore fingerless gloves with steel caps over the knuckles. As my eyes traveled upward, I noticed she had a nice stomach and even nicer breasts; too bad they were hidden under a black tank top. Then I noticed a little tattoo on her collar; a devil's wing. Her lips were curled into a scowl, and she had that angry gleam in her blue eyes.

"Who the fuck are you calling 'dude?'" She growled, her eyebrow twitching as she flicked a piece of her light-brown hair out of her face.

"N-_Nikki_?"

That's right.

The person that saved us… is my girlfriend.

"Who else were you expecting?" Nikki said in a sarcastic tone. "That black cop from the _Dawn of the Dead_ remake? Or maybe Tallahassee?"

"Either one would have been cool.." Demyx admitted, twiddling his fingers. When Nikki glared at him, he added, "B-But we're really happy to see you too."

She rolled her eyes. "Sure you were.. What the hell are you guys doing here?"

"We haven't heard from you in about a week, so we came looking for you." Roxas explained.

"It's nice to see that you've been doing well." Zexion said.

"Oh, yeah." She boasted. "Sandy and I have been killing zombies for over a week. We've even been keeping score. I'm ahead of her."

"Only by two points!"

When we looked back at the hummer, we saw Sandy watching our conversation through the window. She had taken her helmet off. Sitting beside her was Momo.

"I'm still ahead of you, so stop bitching!"

Sandy pouted and sat back in her seat, crossing her arms.

"Okay, you found me, I'm okay, now please go the hell home."

"What?" Roxas exclaimed. "No way! We're not leaving without you!"

"No offense guys, but you'd be more of a…" Nikki hesitated before she said the next word. "liability if you stuck around."

"What does 'liability' mean?" Demyx asked.

"It means we'll drag her down." Zexion answered.

"Oh.."

Nikki sighed. "It's too dangerous out here. We need to continue this conversation somewhere else."

…

- Later, At Another Location -

- Roxas' POV -

…

Nikki and Sandy took us to an abandoned building somewhere in town. Once we got there, her and Axel argued some more.

"For the last time, you're not staying!" She yelled.

"For the last time, yes I am!" Axel yelled back. "Have you forgotten that you're my girlfriend? What kind of boyfriend would I be if I left my girl alone in the middle of a zombie infestation? A shitty one, that's what!"

"I don't know if you've noticed, but I'm doing just fine! I don't need you to come to my rescue every time something bad happens!"

"Stop getting into trouble then, and I wouldn't have to!"

I groaned.

"_Here we go…"_ I thought.

"And what's that supposed to mean?" Nikki exclaimed.

"Come on guys, stop fighting." I urged.

"I don't know if _you've_ noticed, but you're a trouble magnet! You attract trouble!"

She narrowed her eyes at Axel. "Oh, I see. You want to go _there_, do you?"

"N-No he doesn't!" Demyx interjected.

"You're damn right I want to go _there_." Axel growled, stepping towards her.

"Alright then, we'll go _there_!" Nikki growled back.

They stalked towards each other, and butted their foreheads together like a couple of rams. As they butted heads - literally - they pushed against each other to try and push the other back. Being as stubborn as they were, neither would budge.

"Fine! Go _there_, then!" He dared.

"I will!"

"KNOCK IT OFF!"

The exclamation caught all of us off guard. We were even more surprised when we found out it was Zexion that yelled.

"I'm sorry I yelled, but it had to be done." He apologized. He looked at Nikki and Axel and scolded, "You two should be ashamed of yourselves; arguing when there are more important things to worry about."

"Yeah!" Demyx agreed.

"Shame on you!" I scolded.

"I agree!" Sandy chimed in. "For shame!"

Momo took our side also, wagging a reprimanding finger at them before crossing his arms and turning away.

Nikki sighed. "They're right… There are people out there that need help, and we're acting like a couple of jackasses…"

"I definitely feel like a jackass…" Axel groaned, scratching the back of his head. "I'm sorry, babe.."

"I'm sorry too.." Nikki apologized.

"Does this mean we can stay and help?" Demyx asked excitedly.

"Ugh.. _Fine_." Nikki groaned.

"Yes!"

"But you have to stay in the hummer." She added.

Demyx sulked. "Aww…"

Suddenly, as Sandy was fiddling with the radio in the hummer, the radio started making a loud buzzing noise. There was a voice on the other end, but it was difficult to make out.

"Hey, guys!" She called out. "The radio's acting up!"

"What is it?" Nikki asked.

"I don't know. It's kind of fuzzy…"

Sandy fiddled with the dial on the radio, trying to make the message come in clearer.

"… _H…. He-… o… Any…b-body… t-there… ?"_

"Still too fuzzy…"

"_A-Anybody… out… there…?"_

"Almost there…"

"_Hello? Is anybody out there?"_

"There we go!"

The voice on the other end was frantic; and female.

"_Hello? Hello? Anybody? Is anyone out there? Please answer! Help us, please!"_

"It's an S.O.S.!" Sandy exclaimed.

As we listened, we could faintly make out shouting and gunshots. We could also hear some hissing and growling in the background; zombies.

"_These creatures… they're everywhere! We can't hold them back much longer! Please, someone help!"_

_BANG!_

_BANG!_

_CRASH!_

"_They're coming in! Catherine, go upstairs! Quickly!"_

"_Ray, look out!"_

_"RRRUUAAAAAUUUGGGHHH!"_

_BANG!_

_BANG!_

_BANG!_

Then the signal went out. All we could hear now was static.

I looked over at Nikki, and her face was pale. There was fear in her eyes, and she was shaking.

"Nikki? What's the matter?" I asked.

"That transmission…" She said. "… it's from my parents!"

…

…


	5. Chapter 4

**Banshee: Here's the final chapter of 'Dead Zone.' I'm sorry for the delay, but there was a really bad storm where I live, and it knocked out the power and internet for a few days, so I couldn't post it on the 31st like I planned. It's back on now, obviously, and now that it's back I can write my stories again~!**

**Disclaimer: I only own my OCs and the plot.**

* * *

><p>Chapter Four<p>

* * *

><p>…<p>

- Still Roxas' POV -

…

After the transmission went out, we had to grab Nikki to keep her from leaving.

"Let go of me!" She yelled as she kicked and struggled. "I have to save my parents!"

"We know you do!" Zexion reasoned. "But you can't just charge out there, you'll get yourself killed! You need to have a plan!"

"But.. But those are my parents…"

"Your parents wouldn't want you to get yourself killed trying to save them."

"Okay, so we need a plan if we're going to rescue Nikki's parents. Any bright ideas, Einstein?" Axel asked, saying the word 'Einstein' sarcastically.

"That area is bound to be full of zombies. The equipment we have isn't going to be enough." Zexion turned to Nikki and Sandy. "Are there any weapons stores around here?"

"There are three." Nikki said. "Two of them have been cleaned out, but I don't know about the third one."

"We tried checking it out, but it was surrounded by zombies." Sandy added.

"Their numbers may have gone down by now." Zexion said. He paused, then added, "They should be, considering the fact that you two have been taking them out all week."

…

- Later -

- Nikki's POV -

…

The third weapons store was located on the other side of the main island. On the way there, we used one of the few available gas stations to fill up the hummer's tank. Once we did, we headed over to the store. Like Sandy said, it was surrounded by zombies. The store's doors were locked, so we assumed there were no one inside.

The hummer was parked around the corner, out of sight so the zombies couldn't see it. Zexion, being of higher rank than the rest of us, told me and Axel to go inside via portal and grab as many weapons and ammo as possible while he and the others stayed inside the hummer. He also said that if we needed to make more than one trip, to do it. I would have complained about being one of the only two going inside, but this wasn't the time for complaining. We just did as we were told.

We went inside using a portal, and grabbed everything we could; handguns, shotguns, rifles, machine guns, ammunition for everything listed previously, and even a boxful of grenades. We made at least six trips, and on the last one we gathered the rest of the ammunition.

"This is the last of them." I said, picking up the last box of bullets. "Now let's get the hell out of here before they-"

There was a huge _BOOM!_ as a grenade was shot through the ceiling, and it exploded in a mess of fire and smoke. I looked through the window and saw the zombies turn their heads and look straight at us through the glass.

"-find out we're here…"

I could sum up my thoughts on the situation in one word: … _Fuck_…

I glared accusingly at Axel, who was holding a grenade launcher; the barrel was smoking, meaning it had just been fired.

"Now they know." I muttered dryly. "Thanks a lot."

"It was an accident, all right?" Axel yelled defensively. "The stupid thing just went off on me!"

I would have yelled at him, but getting away was more important.

"Let's get out of here!"

We pushed a table in front of the entrance so the zombies couldn't push through. They pounded on the glass, smearing it with blood. The glass was strong enough to hold against the beatings, but there was no telling how long it would last. We ran into the back and tried to get out the back door, but there were zombies there too, pounding on the door.

"It's no good. They're at the exit too."

There was a 'crack' as the windows broke, and the zombies were climbing over each other to get inside. They started filing into the gun store, stumbling through the mess to the back.

"Axel, you have to make a portal." I said.

"What if they follow us?"

"We don't have any other choice! Just do it!"

I held onto him and he created a portal, and we disappeared just as the zombies coming around the corner. We reappeared in the hummer. The others had seen the explosion - hell, who _didn't_ see it? - and they also saw the zombies break into the store, so, naturally, they were really worried. When they saw us, they were relieved, but Sandy still gave me a smack for scaring the hell out of her.

"That was close! Are you guys okay?" Sandy asked.

"Yeah, we're fine." I said.

"Don't ever do that again!" Demyx cried as he hugged me. "I was starting to think you guys died!"

"What was that all about?" Roxas asked.

"Well, numbnuts over here decided he wanted to mess around with the grenade launcher." I grumbled, jerking my thumb towards Axel, who glared at me for calling him that. "Next thing I know, there was a big _boom!_ and there are zombies trying to break in."

"I told you, it was an accident." He growled.

"An accident that almost got us killed."

"At least you two are okay, and in the end that's all that matters." Zexion said.

Momo nodded in agreement.

"Okay, we got the extra firepower. Now let's get going so we can save my parents."

…

- Nikki's House -

…

My house was completely surrounded when we got there. Zombies were on every side, leaving no way in or out. Some were still filing into the house, climbing through the broken window. If my parents were still alive, which I'm betting they are, they were trapped in one spot with no means of escape.

Once again, we hid the hummer a good distance away so we wouldn't get spotted.

"Look at them all." I said. "There's no way we'll get around them.."

Axel smirked. "Wanna bet?"

He snapped his fingers and the horde erupted into flames. The zombies inside were also torched, but he controlled the flames so they wouldn't burn the house down.

The pyro laughed maniacally. "BURN, YOU UNDEAD FUCKERS! BURN!"

The bodies crumbled in a mess of ash and bones after a few seconds, and the flames dissipated almost automatically.

"Good idea, Axel." Roxas said.

"Yes, it's a brilliant idea.." Sandy said sarcastically. "There's no way that big pretty light could possibly attract more zombies…"

"Shut it." Axel growled.

I looked around, and there were no more zombies; for now, at least. They were bound to notice the bright light of the fire, and are probably heading towards the house right now.

"The coast is clear. Let's go." I said, grabbing a gun and getting out of the hummer. I told the others to stay in the vehicle, but Axel and Roxas insisted on coming with me. Sandy wanted to make sure no zombies got in while we were there, Zexion was her backup, and Demyx was just too scared and hid in the backseat.

We cautiously stepped into the house, ready to shoot in case there were any zombies left. Axel torched most of them, but he only burned the ones he could see. There might have been more that we didn't know about.

There were some bodies on the floor, but, thankfully, none of them belonged to my parents.

"Mom?" I called out. "Dad?"

"I don't see them anywhere…" Roxas said.

I thought to myself, _"Where could they have gone?"_

Then it hit me.

"Nikki? Where are you going?" Axel asked as I headed up the stairs.

"When I was a kid, Dad built a secret room; a place we could go if anything went wrong." I said.

"Like a zombie apocalypse?" Axel inquired sarcastically. "That would qualify as anything going wrong."

"Where is this 'secret room?'" Roxas asked.

"I'll show you." I said. "Follow me."

With those two watching my back, I led them upstairs. I stopped after a while, and reached up at the ceiling, grabbing a string and pulling it down. A hatch opened, and a ladder unfolded and I set it down on the floor. The ladder led to our attic.

"The attic?" Roxas asked with a raised eyebrow.

I nodded.

"So…" Axel said. "Who wants to go first?"

"They're my parents. I'll go." I said.

"No. I'll go." He said.

"They're _my_ parents. _I'm_ going."

"You're _my_ girlfriend. _I'm_ going."

"Rock paper scissors?"

"You're on."

"Come on, guys…" Roxas groaned.

"One, two, three!"

We both had paper.

"Tie!"

"One, two, three!"

We tied again; this time it was scissors.

"Again!"

"One, two, three!"

Paper again.

"Again!"

"One, two, three!"

Axel laughed triumphantly when he got rock and I had scissors.

"Ha! Rock beats scissors!" He gloated. "I win!"

"Damn it…" I grumbled.

…

- Axel's POV -

…

Roxas and Nikki held onto the ladder as I climbed up. The attic was pitch black, and I couldn't see a damn thing.

"You see anything up there?" Nikki asked.

"It's really dark up here." I said. "Anybody got a light?"

I froze when a two-barrel shotgun was pointed at my face.

"All right, you bastard.." A familiar, slightly English voice growled. "You've got five seconds before I blast you to Kingdom Come!"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" I exclaimed frantically, recognizing the voice as my girlfriend's father. "M-Mr. Hale! Wait! It's me, Axel!"

I knew he didn't believe me because he cocked the gun and prepared to shoot.

"Dad, wait!" Nikki yelled.

As soon as he heard Nikki's voice, Mr. Hale froze and looked towards the entrance, where she was watching from the ladder. When he saw her, his eyes started to tear up.

"N-Nicole…? You're alright!" He turned around. "Catherine, look!"

Nikki's mother emerged from the darkness carrying a flashlight.

"Nikki!" She exclaimed. "Oh, thank goodness you and your friends are all right!"

Overcome with emotion, Nikki ran over to embrace her parents. She was crying and holding onto them for dear life; as if they would disappear if she let go.

"I was so worried about you guys.." She choked out.

"It's alright, dear.." Mr. Hale said softly as he held his wife and daughter close. "We're all together now.."

Suddenly I felt like chopped liver. But, hey, this was Nikki's moment, and I didn't want to ruin it.

The hug ender after about thirty seconds.

"How did you find us?" Mrs. Hale asked.

"We heard a transmission over the radio." I said.

Mrs. Hale nodded. "That's right. I was calling for help using our old radio while Ray was keeping those… _things_ away. But they broke in, and we barely made it up here."

"You guys weren't bitten, were you?" Nikki asked.

"No. Ray has seen every zombie movie ever made. There's no way he'd let those monsters anywhere near us. What about you? Are you alright?"

"I'm fine." Nikki said. "Sandy and I have been killing zombies all week."

"You mean you've been handling firearms?" Her father asked, the tone in his voice pointing towards a good scolding.

"Yes Dad."

"And you've been _killing_ zombies with them?"

"Um… Yes?"

Instead of a scolding, he patted her on the head and proclaimed proudly, "That's my girl."

"Uh… guys…" I heard Roxas' voice back in the hall. "I'd hate to interrupt your reunion, but we have a problem…"

After that, we heard that familiar hissing and groaning.

Roxas frantically climbed up the ladder to avoid the zombies coming up the hallway, and I had no choice but to destroy the ladder so they couldn't follow him. The zombies were below us, and they knew we were above them so they weren't going anywhere, and wee were stuck in a dark, windowless attic. If Roxas and I were normal people like Nikki and her parents, there would be no way out.

As for how the zombies got here… they _may_ have been drawn here by the bright light of the fire when I used my powers to destroy the other zombies so we could get inside the house.

"You know, in retrospect, maybe creating a giant inferno to destroy the zombies wasn't such a good idea after all.." I said.

"No, really.. You think?" Said Nikki.

I gave her a look.

"What will we do now?" Mrs. Hale asked. "There's no way out of here."

"Yes there is." Nikki said, looking at me and Roxas.

We knew what she was getting at, and I created a portal. Her father was reluctant to step into it at first, but with some persuasion from his wife and a - literal - push from his daughter, he went through.

"It's so cold in there.." He remarked when we exited the portal. "How can you stand to use those things all the time?"

"It's not so bad once you get used to it." Nikki said.

"Where are we?" Catherine asked.

We weren't in Destiny Islands anymore. Instead, we were in one of the many places that, luckily, weren't affected by the outbreak; Twilight Town.

"This is Twilight Town." Roxas said. "You guys will be safe here."

"W-Where are you kids going?"

"We have to go back for the others." Nikki said.

"Fine, but once you get your friends, come right back here. Understand, young lady?" Nikki's father said sternly.

"Yes, Dad."

"Good luck, dear."

We went back to the islands, and found Sandy using the hummer to do doughnuts in some God-forsaken parking lot. We would have gone back immediately after we found them, but Nikki remembered a promise she made and went back for Sora, Riku, and Kairi. After that, we left the islands and rejoined everyone else in Twilight Town.

…

- Six Months Later -

- Normal POV -

…

Six months later, it was almost like the outbreak never happened.

A lot of people lost their loved ones and their homes to the virus, and couldn't go back until the area was cleaned out and the mess from it was put in the nearest biohazard dump. It would be a long time before Destiny Islands was safe again, and the people who used to live there would need to start a new life in a new world until that day came; which, again, wasn't going to be for a while.

Nikki's family and friends started a new life in Twilight Town; at least until Destiny Islands was safe again. She visited them often, and they seemed to be adjusting well enough to the - drastic - changes.

"How's Twilight Town been treating you?" Nikki asked as she sat with her mother.

"It's taken some getting used to, but I think we're all right now." Catherine said, smiling.

"That's good."

"What you and your friends did was very brave. I'm proud of you for helping everyone."

Nikki sighed. "I'm just glad it's over… I hope I never have to see another zombie again.."

A bloody hand appeared on Nikki's shoulder and she responded with a shriek and flipped her attacker over.

"What the-?" Nikki exclaimed when she saw her boyfriend on the floor. "_Axel_?"

"Hey, babe." He greeted, waving his makeup-covered arm. "I see you still have those cat-like reflexes. Reeowwr~.."

"That wasn't funny!" She hissed.

"Come on babe, lighten up." Axel said.

"You are such an idiot.."

"Hello, Mrs. Hale~!" Sandy greeted as she, and everyone else in Nikki's circle of friends, appeared in the kitchen. "Hi Nikki~!"

"Hi kids." Mrs. Hale greeted back.

"We're going out for ice cream." Roxas said. "Wanna come with?"

"Sure thing. Just give me a second." Nikki said. She then turned around and kicked Axel in the shin.

"Ow!" He yelped. "What was that for?"

"For scaring me. Now let's go."

The group said goodbye to Nikki's mother, and went to get some ice cream. Unbeknownst to them, a figure was watching them from the shadows; a figure with bright yellow eyes, growling as they bared their razor sharp teeth…

…

~ The End… ? ~

…

…


End file.
